


Reunion

by chaoticamanda



Category: Fallout 4
Genre: Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Established Relationship, F/M, Family, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Kidnapping, Spoilers, Weddings, post-the nuclear option
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-03
Updated: 2016-01-25
Packaged: 2018-05-11 14:04:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5629174
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chaoticamanda/pseuds/chaoticamanda
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nora realizes there's someone missing from their life in Sanctuary, and sets out to make it right. After all, a boy needs his father.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> this takes place post- the nuclear option and pretends that synth Shaun was never presented to the SS.

They’re setting up a schoolhouse in Sanctuary when it hits her. It’s been months since they blew up the Institute, and she’s been working off her ass to build a life. The first thing she’d done after destroying the Institute was go back to her Vault, quietly asking Maccready to stay at Sanctuary and pleading the help of Codsworth to bury her husband. At her best guess, Nate had been dead for around four months-- not counting the sixty years before she’d woken up. Standing over his real grave, she felt a fleeting stab of guilt over loving Maccready, but she didn’t linger on it. The world had changed drastically, resurrected from ashes. Nate belonged there in the ashes, where he could rest peacefully with their son. As far as she’s concerned, her baby had died with him. 

“It’s been...a long night, Mum. Perhaps dawn is finally breaking,” Codsworth had said, hovering over the grave of his former Master. She hadn’t been able to agree more. 

When she’d returned to the town, she’d found Maccready a little hesitant and apprehensive. She could tell by the way he was standing, one foot turned out as if ready to leave. She focused on the one foot pointed towards her. “I want to build a life with you,” she’d offered quietly, nervous that he’d changed his mind as well. 

“Oh, thank God,” he’d mumbled before swallowing her up in a kiss. She’d torn down her old house in Sanctuary and together they’d built a new, stable home with extra bedrooms for their friends and a library for books they’d collected. Preston had been the one to come up to her about the schoolhouse, as more and more families were arriving. 

Maccready is helping a little girl with her letters when she realizes that she’s keeping his family apart. She knows that he won’t leave her, and he’s told her that it’s okay that Duncan stays in D.C. with Cupcake as long as he’s safe. But it’s not okay with her. Her child had been ripped from his family, and she’d never had a chance to be a real mother to him. Maccready has a son who needs his father, especially with his mother having been killed. 

So she watches Maccready interact with the children and mulls over her options, and when he looks up at her, she offers him a dazzling smile. The next day she visits Goodneighbor alone, telling him to stay behind because she had important business with Hancock and it wouldn’t make sense for him to go all the way there and then trek all the way back alone. 

“I just want to make sure you’re safe,” he mumbles into her hair, “I know you. I know how trouble always has a habit of finding you.”

“I’ll be fine,” she whispers back, head pressed against his chest, “I’m always going to come back to you.”

When she gets to Goodneighbor, she visits Daisy first. The ghoul has always been the middleman for Maccready and his son, so she can probably get Nora the information she needs. “Hey, Daisy! Can you give me some information about...transport?”

Daisy gives Nora a look, “I suppose I can, since you cleared out that library for me. What do you need?”

“Well…” Nora fidgets, nerves welling in her stomach, “How difficult do you think it’d be to get Ro-- Maccready’s son on a safe caravan up to here?”

The surprise is obvious on the ghoul’s face, and her lips stretch into a wide smile, “Well, for the right amount of caps, it probably wouldn’t be too difficult. The caravan’s not the problem-- the security is. You’d need some good people who knew how to defend if a sticky situation came about.”

“Okay…” Nora bites her lip, “How much do you think that’d cost?”

Daisy sighs, leaning on her elbows, calculating for a few moments, “To be real safe...probably about four thousand caps-- with some security from DC. But...I think it’s worth it. Maccready...he deserves to see his son again.”

“Thanks, Daisy,” Nora mumbles, giving her a grateful smile, “I’ll be back.”

“I hope so,” the ghoul replies, nodding. 

Nora steps out of the little shop and sits on the bench instead of heading to the State House. Maccready and her have saved up double the amount of caps it’ll take to bring Duncan home, but...it is a lot of money. If something happens, if it gets misplaced, she’ll have a lot to answer for. 

Taking a deep breath, she stands, her chest tying itself into a nervous knot. Hancock can tell right away when he sees her that something is up, “You look like you need a nice dose of jet, sister.”

“Hancock,” her voice sounds a lot more desperate than it should, “I...I need your help.”

He straightens immediately, touching her arm, “What’s up? Where’s Mac?”

“He’s fine,” she assures, “I...well, I want to bring his son up here. To live with us.”

“Oh?” Hancock leads her to one of his sitting rooms, plopping them both down on a couch.

“I...they need each other. I just talked to Daisy about it, and she says I’ll need some good security for his caravan. Do you...do you have any contacts in DC? Anybody you trust?”

Hancock sits back, thinking, “Well...there could be a few people who owe me favors. Good people. I’ll see what I can do. How about...you give me a week, okay? I got your back, sister.”

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” The knot loosens a little, “You don’t know how much this means to me, Hancock.”

He waves her off, “It’s no problem. You’ve helped me with my fair share of troubles, this ain’t no skin off my back. Ha.”

Nora grins and kisses him on the cheek, leaving with one last, “Thanks, Hancock.”

Maccready meets her on the bridge when she returns, shamelessly pulling her into his arms and spinning her around, “How was it?”

“Alright,” she shrugs, reaching into her pack when they stop spinning, “I got you this.”

She hands him a Nuka Cola Quantum, scavenged from a port-o-shelter on her way back. He takes it delicately, and shoots her that sort-of pleased, sort-of embarrassed smile he always gets when she gives him things. “I love you, you know that?”

“I know,” she grins, ignoring the way her cheeks still blush even though it’s been almost eight months since he first said it, “Who else would put up with all your whining?”

Maccready pulls her close again, “I’m glad you’re back.”

Hancock sends out a message that he needs to meet with her a few days later, and this time she can’t stop Maccready from coming. She can tell that he’s suspicious of something, especially when she asks him to go sell their scavenged weapons to KLEO. “Sure...hey, are you sure everything’s alright?”

She wants to tell him the truth, but she can’t. “Of course. There’s nothing you need to worry about, Rob.” Her voice cracks on his name, giving her away, but he doesn’t push any further. Instead he presses his lips to hers and gives her a lasting look that makes her feel a little guilty. After her talk with Hancock, she won’t need to feel guilty, then she can tell him. But for now the knot has tightened itself. 

Hancock unravels it completely, telling her that he’s assembled a trustworthy, competent, skilled crew for her and he was able to haggle them so that her total price is five hundred less caps than expected. For the first time in a very long time everything is going exactly as it should. 

She finds Maccready talking to Daisy and panics for a second, praying that Daisy hasn’t given away the surprise. She arrives just in time to hear Daisy say cryptically, “That girl’s gonna make things real good--”

Maccready is listening to Daisy with narrowed eyes, trying to piece together exactly what he’s missing. Nora shoots Daisy a look before slipping her hand into his, making him turn towards her. She’s still not used to the way he looks at her-- like she’s not real, half the time. Nate loved her, but he’d never looked reverent of her like Maccready does. “Hey, Beautiful,” he says, grinning down at her, “You finished with Hancock?”

“Yeah,” she has to fight to keep the smile off of her face, taking care not to look at Daisy, “C’mon, I’ve got a...a surprise for you.”

“A surprise?” His brows draw together and he doesn’t let her pull him like she hopes, “Those...usually aren’t good in the Commonwealth.”

She sighs, “Don’t you trust me, Rob?”

“Of course,” he says immediately, softening, “...with anything.”

“Good,” she smiles again, leaning into his arm, “Let’s go somewhere...less public.”

“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were trying to seduce me,” he jokes, but she can see the thin lines of worry on his face. She leads him out of Goodneighbor and into an abandoned bistro-- free of raiders and settlers alike. He watches her as she moves about, dusting off chairs and looking for a small table with four legs. When he thinks that it’s taking too long, that she’s stalling about something, he reaches for her arm and asks again, “Hey...is something wrong?”

She turns to him with a faltering smile and an unsteady voice, “No. Well, I hope not.”

His hand tightens on her arm like he’s afraid she’s going to disappear. “You can tell me  _ anything _ . Nora. If something’s on your mind, I wanna hear it.”

She takes a deep breath and then looks up at him, her words tumbling out of her mouth, “IwantDuncantolivewithusandIhavethemoneyrightnowtobringhimhere.”

Maccready is silent for a beat and then he blurts, “What?”

“I...I’ve been trying to find a way to get your son up here, with...us. Hancock and Daisy have been helping me, and I’ve got my caps ready to be handed over if you agree. He...Duncan needs you, Rob. My...my baby was stolen from me, I never had the chance to raise him. Duncan can be safe in Sanctuary...and--” her lower lip begins wobble, unable to stop the stream of words, “--if you want to raise him...by yourself I won’t hold that against you. But I just think that he really-- he really needs you and you need him.” 

Maccready just stares at her. She can feel heat behind her eyes, but before she can attempt to push away her tears, she is being yanked toward Maccready. His voice is rough in her ear, “You think that after you do everything--” his voice cracks, “--everything you possibly could to make me happy that I’d-- what? Love you less? Want to leave?”

She’s crying. “I just...I don’t want to force you into anything.”

He pulls back to cradle her face in his hands, and all she can think is  _ Piper calls me Blue but has she seen his eyes?  _ “Having you this close to me has made me happier than I can ever remember being. The day you told me that you loved me was one of the greatest days of my life and it’ll be a cold  _ fucking  _ day in Hell before I let anything bad happen to you, Nora. I love you, and if you want to, I want to be a family with you.”

Maccready falls silent, searching her face, his own eyes wet. Swallowing loudly and letting out a choked laugh she whispers, “Language, Rob.”

He laughs too and then they’re kissing and then they’re pushing their way into an old closet in the back of the bistro, not caring how unsafe it may be.  An hour later they’re walking back to Goodneighbor to pay Daisy, and Maccready seems unable to speak when she hands over the caps. Daisy assures, “I’ll get this going ASAP. He should be here before the next week if everything’s ready.”

“Thanks, Daisy,” Nora smiles, pulling Maccready back because she’s pretty sure he’s going to start crying again. She fills the air with words, not minding if he doesn’t listen. “I was thinking we could turn that room on the corner of upstairs into his room-- the views better than the ones next to ours. And that soldier you gave me, we can put it up somewhere. We might have to scavenge for some quality--”

“He’ll love it,” Maccready says quietly, cutting her off. She pauses when he stops walking and says earnestly, “He’ll love you.” 

She really doesn’t want to cry in the streets of Goodneighbor, but she might. She thinks of Nate then, how many nights they’d spent up talking about their baby. The one thing they’d always agreed on was his safety, that they would do everything in their power to keep Shaun from being hurt. God knew that Nate had done that-- had fought for Shaun until the very end. Her thoughts turned to Lucy then, and she quietly hopes that wherever Lucy is she knows that Nora will do everything in her power to keep Duncan safe now. Dimly, in the back of her mind, she thinks this is the real start of her new life.


	2. Reunion: Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [Maccready loved that.]

Her heart is in her throat when Preston shouts up the road that a caravan is entering the settlement-- just crossing the bridge where he’s stationed. They’ve spent the whole week preparing for the arrival of Maccready’s son, but now that he’s actually here she feels more nervous than she had been when going into the Glowing Sea. Maccready is at her side, bouncing on his heels and she can tell that he’s nervous too. It reassures her a little bit, but when that little boy steps off the wagon they use as transport she knows everything will change-- she hopes for the better.

“I can’t believe this is actually happening,” Maccready mutters to her, leaning down even though he’s only got a few inches on her. She squeezes his hand, ignoring the pounding of her own heart. Before the war she’d been fairly good with kids, but her own son had only been with her for a year before being kidnapped and socialized to think he was superior to the surviving human race, so what did she really know?

She hears Maccready’s sharp inhale when two knobby little legs hit the pavement and then he’s gone from her side and scooping up the little boy. “Duncan!”

“Daddy!” The little boy squeals, happily pressing his hands to his father’s face. He’s a little short for seven, but then again, she doesn’t really know what averages are for Commonwealth kids. He has light brown hair and freckles that must be from his mother, and she wonders distantly how Maccready could ever leave someone like him behind.

She watches as Maccready presses short little kisses all over the happy boy’s face, clutching the child against him. “I missed you so much, buddy. You look real strong again!”

“I missed you too, daddy,” the little boy sighs, hugging his father just as close. Nora can see

the tears on Maccready’s cheeks and her heart swells, threatening to spill over and make her cry too. If she couldn’t have her son back, at least he can.

Maccready looks up after a moment, as if remembering that she’s there, “Dunc, I want you to meet my best friend Nora. She’s the one who helped me get you your medicine.”

She can’t stop her cheeks from heating up, and she gives Duncan a little wave, “Hi!”

“Hello,” the boy scrutinizes her for a moment before trying to whisper to his father, “She’s real pretty, Daddy.”

Nora laughs at that, and so does Maccready, “I think so too, bud. Hey, you wanna see your room? We fixed it up just for you.”

Duncan seems excited, and she’s glad that she decided to orchestrate this. When Maccready looks at her his eyes shine, and she's never seen him this happy. Before he asks her if she wants to come up with him she blurts, “I’ve gotta take care of a few things, I’ll be in soon, alright?”

His face falters for a second, but she smiles reassuringly at him. She’s got no thoughts of leaving, she just wants to give him some time alone with his son. The two of them head into the house and she savors the sight, feeling a familiar sense of fondness. The caravan guards look bored and she thanks them profusely, but they only respond, “We owed Hancock.”

She heads into their house slowly, still jittery. She’s afraid the boy won’t like her, or that Maccready’s feelings for her will change, no matter what he says. There can’t be anymore frivolous romps around the house or spontaneous expeditions, and she’s going to be more insistent about holidays now.

She can hear the two of them talking when she hits the top of the stairs and she hangs back to listen, unwilling to intrude.

“-- like Nora?” the boy is on the tail end of asking.

“Daddy loves Nora almost as much he loves you,” Maccready laughs and she feels her heart flutter, “and you know how much that is.”

There's giggling and she hears Duncan say, “This much!”

“Yeah, that much,” Maccready sighs, “I really missed you, Dunc.”

She decides it’s an okay time to enter, and steps into the doorway, twisting her hands together. Maccready’s squatting on the floor with his son and he looks up at her with a grin, holding out his hand to her. She smiles back fondly, taking it. Duncan doesn’t seem phased by it, so she assumes he’s okay with this new lady touching his father. “Hey, Duncan,” she tries nervously, “Do you want to meet our dog?”

Duncan’s blue eyes practically bulge out of his head, “You have a doggy?”

“Well, he’s yours now too,” she grins, trying and failing to keep from blushing from the way Maccready’s looking at her. Her face hot, she leans back and whistles, listening for the clatter of Dogmeat’s nails against their floor. The german shepherd comes bounding in, pushing into Maccready and tilting his head at the little boy.

“He won’t bite,” Maccready encourages his son, lifting his own hand to ruffle Dogmeat’s fur. Duncan reaches out a tiny hand timidly, giggling in delight when Dogmeat licks it. She glances at Maccready and thinks _this is what we’re meant to be._

A few hours later Duncan has passed out in his bed, weary from his travels and all the new things he’s being introduced to. Dogmeat is curled up faithfully by his side, and Nora has a feeling he’s found a new person to stick around. Maccready had dozed off as well, his hand curled protectively over Duncan’s and she wishes that she had a working camera. She’ll have to add it to the list. Leaving the three of them upstairs, she wanders outside and finds herself at Nate’s grave.

She leans against the back of the stone, basking in the warmth of the sun. The settlers seem to know to leave her alone, and no one makes the trip up the hill to find her. “I used to think that this world was fucked-- that the world I left you in was the last time that the human race would ever be...good, I guess,” she says quietly to the grave, “but seeing Rob and Duncan...it gives me a lot of hope. I feel like...like I did when I found out I was pregnant. It’s enough for me. It’s more than I ever thought I’d have again.”

The warm day and the exhaustion of all her anxieties leave her nodding off, and her head snaps up, hitting the stone when a loud bark startles her from sleep. “Jesus…” she murmurs, rubbing the back of her head as she peers into the distance and sees Dogmeat trotting towards her, Maccready not far behind. He looks distressed, and for a moment she thinks something has happened to Duncan, but when Maccready sees her peering down at him he relaxes.

“Nora,” he says when he’s a few feet away, his eyes raking over her body. He repeats her name, swallowing as he drops down next to her.

“What’s wrong?” she asks, searching his face.

He lets out a loud, relieved breath and sheepishly says, “I woke up and you were gone. I thought maybe you’d gone to visit the schoolhouse or something, but Garvey said he didn’t know where you were and I…” the tips of his ears turn red, “...I started to get worried, but Dogmeat tracked you right away.”

She leans into his arm and murmurs, “I told you I wasn’t going to leave, Rob.” It’s genuine and soft, but they can both hear the irritation seeping into it. She’s told him this a dozen times since she first brought it up in the bistro.

“I know,” he says defensively, and then lowers her head and admits, “I’m having some trouble believing I’m not dreaming.”

Her gut twists and she climbs into his lap, straddling him and cradling his face, “I’m real, Duncan’s real, and even Dogmeat’s real. And we all love you.”

“Yeah?” and the way his voice breaks kills her just a little inside. “Being...having Duncan here doesn’t change anything?”

“It does,” she murmurs, and shakes her head at the panic that flits across his face, “It makes it better.”

He’s quiet for a few moments, trailing his fingers up and down the sides of her thighs before he murmurs, “I don’t deserve you.”

“Rob, stop--”

“No, listen,” he cuts her off, “I don’t deserve you, but I’m going to spend every freaking day of my life trying to. No one else...no one’s ever cared about me this much,” she uses her thumbs to wipe away the small tears that leak from his eyes, “and I want...I want you to feel as I loved as I do-- more than I do.”

She’s crying too now, but it’s not from anything she’s ever felt before. They’re not exactly happy tears, but they’re definitely not sad or angry, either. Maccready swallows again, kissing the tears off both of her cheeks before continuing, “...and I meant what I said about the family thing. If-- If you want I’d really, really love it if...if you were my wife.”

Nora has no idea how marriage works now, or if he’s really proposing, but she can’t stop the strangled moan of, _“Of course,”_ from slipping past her lips.

Maccready starts to laugh, pulling her close, and laying there in the warm embrace of the sunlight it almost feels like they’re in a different world. Their kiss is leisurely despite their tears and Maccready is the first to mumble, “We should get back before Dunc wakes up.”

“Yeah,” she agrees, rising slowly, pulling him up with her, “We should probably start dinner before it gets any later.”

“Do we have any mirelurk meat left?” he asks as if they haven’t just agreed to get married or whatever the equivalent is here.

“There’s some in the storeroom,” she answers, lightly swinging their hands, “I can probably make a roast out of it if we aren’t out of spices.”

“Sounds good,” he grins, bringing her knuckles to his lips and kissing them.

Nora grins smugly, thinking for the first time since she’s left that goddamn vault that she’s finally home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i probably won't add any more to this fic-- it's cheesy enough as it is. i may write some oneshots in this universe later


	3. Communion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Their wedding is the bash of century. Nora figures she's got the authority to say that, having lived in multiple centuries.

Three weeks after Maccready asks her if she’ll be his wife, it really sinks in that she has no idea how marriage works in the Commonwealth. In the past three weeks she’s been building in Sanctuary, scavenging, and spending time with Duncan and she hasn’t had time to think about it until Maccready brings home two wedding rings. He presents them to her shyly, like she might not have been serious that day on the hill. She doesn’t hold it against him-- their lives are constantly shifting right now, trying to find a pattern that works.

The two of them can no longer set out on expeditions only to get sidetracked and derailed-- they have a little boy depending on both of them now. Surprisingly, Jun seems to come to life when Duncan is introduced to the settlement, offering to watch him if they ever need it. Preston does the same, and she sees him inflate a little bit when Duncan admires his position.

Maccready went out on a little scavenging mission with Sturges, and that’s where he gets the rings. She’d just put Duncan to bed, reading him a copy of Grognak the Barbarian. Like his father, he loves to read and he’s fairly good at making up stories, which she encourages any way she can. “Nora?” he asks shyly from his bed when she gets up to leave.

“Yeah?” she turns back to him, tucking the comic book under her arm. Maccready should be back soon-- should have been back already, if she’s being honest, and she wants to make sure he’s okay.

“Can...can I have a kiss goodnight?”

She’s stunned for a moment, staring at the little boy blankly. She’d never imagined that she’d ever get to be a part of this, to be a parent again. “Of course,” she smiles softly, pressing her lips to his forehead, “Sweet dreams, alright?”

“You too!” he smiles at her and it makes her heart flutter, “Goodnight!”

She makes it out the door before she begins to cry, covering her mouth with her fist and walking quietly to the kitchen. Duncan Maccready is so sweet, so loving, and he is everything she wishes her own son could have been. She doesn’t deserve to be loved by him, to be admired-- not when she left her dying son in the building she’d effectively nuked. Even if Shaun had been deluded and cold, he had been her son.

“Hey, angel, sorry I--” She jumps when she hears Maccready, too much inside of her own head to notice that he’s finally come home. He rushes to her side, eyes probing every inch of her he can see, “What’s wrong? Are you okay? Is Duncan okay?”

“H-he’s fine,” she squeaks out around the tears, trying to swallow the lump in her throat, “I’m fine. I just...I’m really happy.”

“People don’t usually cry alone in a kitchen when they’re happy,” he says, pulling her into his arms.

“You cried, like, two weeks ago because you were happy, in this very same house,” she accuses, pressing her cheek into his chest. When he laughs she can feel the vibrations, and she feels a lazy happiness settle in her chest.

“Special Exception. Most people usually don’t have everything they want all in one place,” he murmurs, hugging her closer.

“Rob…”

He pulls away, avoiding her gaze and digging into his pockets, “Hey-- I got you something. A-- a little late, I guess...um, here.”

Maccready presses a silver ring into her palm, blushing and spinning a matching band in his fingers. It takes her a moment to comprehend what they are before she lets out a little, “Oh,” gazing at the rings.

“I... I should’ve had these when I asked you, uh, should’ve probably asked better too,” he laughs awkwardly and looks away.

“It’s perfect,” she says earnestly, looking up at him with shining eyes again, “You’re perfect, but….”

“But?” he asks, his eyes snapping from the floor to her face, and she can see and hear the worry in his voice. The greatest hurdles in their relationship always come from insecurities and misscommunications. She needs to be honest and clear, or else he could take it negatively. 

“...I don’t really know how marriage works anymore,” she confesses, “like...is there a ceremony...or something? There’s no real official legal system anymore, I don’t think.”

“Oh,” he blinks and then grins at her in relief, “Well, I guess it’s up to you. Lucy and I...we were married by Little Lamplight and Big Town standards. People just kind of declare it now.”

“Hm,” she bites her lip and asks hesitantly, “Do...how would you feel if we...we did something a little bit more formal than that?”

He pulls away from her, going to the makeshift fridge they have and pulling out a drink, “Whaddya have in mind? There’s no legal system, like you said.”

“Well, I was a lawyer... I can pretty much remember the main words you need to say and all that. I just...pre-war weddings were like two parts-- the ceremony and then the huge party you threw afterwards to celebrate. I think people would like it. They need it.”

Maccready puts down his beer and looks at her, “Is it what you want?”

She pulls a deep breath and mumbles, “Yeah, I do.”

“Then we’ll do it,” he smiles, and she thinks from the way it makes her chest stutter that these Maccready boys will be the death of her.

She spends most of that night outlining what they’ll need and she explains how the ceremony works. They both agree Nick would probably be the best step-in JP, and using some spare paper and some rare crayons they’d found, they draw up crude invitations. Maccready watches her while she’s working and when she glances up, his eyes drop to the rings. “So...are we gonna wear them?”

“Usually you don’t wear the rings until after the ceremony,” she answers, returning to her sloppy drawing of wedding bells. Maybe she should have asked Duncan to help. When she’s met with silence, she glances back at up him and he’s still staring at the rings. Biting her lip, she reaches over and grabs the one meant for him, pulling his left hand into her with her free one, “But I guess we can wear them now and then take them off right before.”

She smiles up at him as she slides the ring onto his finger and then giggles when he does the same to her. He’s looking at her seriously, inching closer, “I love you.”

She closes the distance between them and murmurs, “I love you too.”

Maccready insists that she take someone with her on her trip if she won’t take him, so she whistles for Dogmeat and sticks her tongue out at Maccready. He rolls his eyes and kisses her goodbye, lingering just a little too long. The path to Diamond City is quiet, a healthy smattering of Minutemen patrolling at different points. Piper greets her at the gates, but Nora tells her they'll meet later. She wants to be sure that Nick'll do it, because Piper is their second choice.

Nick is lounging in his desk chair when she enters, and his thin lips stretch into a smile when he sees her, “There you are! How’re you doing, kid? It’s been awhile since you’ve visited.”

“Oh, um, really good,” she answers nervously, tucking some hair behind her ear. Nick always makes her nervous, afraid that somehow she’ll disappoint him. “That’s actually why I’m here, uh, I was wondering if you could do something for me.”

“What’s on your mind?” he asks, leaning forward and petting Dogmeat when the dog rests between his legs.

“Well--” she fidgets, feeling the same way she did when she told her father she was marrying Nate, “Mac and I...we’re getting married, but...I want it to be something like pre-war marriages, so we’re gonna say a few words and then throw a big party. The two of us...we were wondering if you’d act as our Justice of the Peace. You’d just have to--”

Nick holds up a weathered hand, “Say no more, kid, I’ll do it. We could all use a little more happiness around here. When’s this shindig kicking off?”

She grins and fishes out an invitation, labeled for two weeks from today. She figures that’ll give people enough time to convene from all their hidden corners of the Commonwealth and it’ll give them enough time to scavenge what they need. “Thank you, Nick. This means the world to me.”

His golden eyes shimmer up at her, “You deserve it.”

It takes four days for Maccready to find a suit without any holes that can’t be patched up stealthily and Cait helps Nora find a dress that looks good enough to match in six. All of their friends are coming and she works extra hard to procure supplies to wow them with cooking. While she's been staying more permanently at Sanctuary, she's been working on trying to make food taste like it had prewar. She's had some successes and some disgusting, disgusting losses. By the time the day has finally rolled around, Sanctuary has been successfully prepared and then some. Hancock donated some banners from his State House to decorate, and Sturges was setting up pretty lights and a radio with amplified speakers. 

Nora explains to Duncan what a ring bearer is and he’s over the moon about being that and a best man. Maccready watches them with a relaxed grin before she pushes them both out of the house to get ready. Piper and Cait are her makeshift bridesmaids, even though they couldn't find matching dresses. Hancock is standing beside Duncan and Maccready, and the ghoul had been so pleasantly surprised that it had made her heart ache a little. Everyone deserved a little bit of happiness, and she's glad that she can be apart of it.

She can hear the murmur of all of their friends outside her window, and she’s surprised to find that nerves have wound their way into her on her post-apocalyptic wedding day. It’s not that she’s having second thoughts or that she doesn’t want this-- it’s actually the opposite. She’s scared by just how much she wants this life-- wants to wake up next to Maccready, walk Duncan to the Sanctuary Schoolhouse, eat dinner with the two of them, talking about their days like some nuclear family from the past.

She doesn’t realize how long she’s taking until someone knocks on her door, and she’s surprised to hear Deacon on the other side of it, “Whisper? You still in here?”

“Yeah!” she calls, wrenching open the door, “Sorry...I just...was thinking.”

“Good thoughts, I hope,” he grins, “Cause you’re about to get married, baby. You're about to have a permanent companion, and in my humble opinion, it's one of the best things in this godforsaken world.”

“I know,” and she smiles, “I just want it all to work out.”

“It will,” Deacon assures, “I won’t be the only one spreading awesome tales about this party, that's a fact.”

She glances at the mirror, smoothing the sequin dress down. Deacon steps closer, holding out his hand, “You look beautiful, Whisper. Trust me when I say that’s not an exaggeration.”

“Thank you,” she sighs, looking in the mirror one last time before taking his hand and letting Deacon lead her out to the ceremony. Everyone is seated in makeshift chairs, leading down a small aisle. Both Maccreadys are at the end of it, and the way Rob is looking at her makes her toes curl. He's always made her feel important, loved, and she never wants to stop the mutual give and take they have going.

When she finally comes to a stop beside him, Nick begins to recite the words she wrote out for him, “Ladies and gentlemen…”

“I do,” Maccready says earnestly, looking at her like she’s the center of his universe.

“I do,” Nora murmurs, her voice wobbling with the conviction behind her words.

Maccready pulls her roughly into his arms when Nick gives him the okay, pressing his lips to hers and letting out a whoop when they break apart.

Preston lifts Duncan onto his shoulders as they all laugh and sigh their way to where the food and music is set up. He's agreed to take Duncan for the night so that they can have some privacy, and she's already thanking him profusely in her head. Maccready pulls out her chair for her and she laughs, asking him when he started being so chivalrous. He responds that chivalry belongs to married men, which only makes her laugh harder. When everyone is stuffing their faces, he leans over and quietly asks, “How does it feel to officially be a Maccready?”

“Well,” she purses her lips, “I must be like ten times cuter now.”

He doesn’t have a chance to retort before Hancock has grabbed a microphone and insists that the happy couple need to kick off the dancing, his words already starting to slur slightly. She pulls a reluctant Maccready to his feet and leads him to their makeshift dance floor, laughing as they sway uncreatively. Hancock drags Fahrenheit out and then Piper twirls in with Duncan, both of them giggling like mad people. 

As more people filter onto the dance floor, Maccready and Nora slip away, both breathing heavily and grinning at each other like lovesick teenagers. “Are you happy?” he asks, leaning down into her face, their noses brushing together.

“Always,” she sighs, wrapping an arm around the back of his neck and drawing him even closer. "Are you?"

"More than I ever thought possible," he murmurs, dropping his head to skim kisses up and down her neck. She can hear the music pulsing from the speakers and she can hear the squeals and giggles and the general sound of happiness just around the corner as people drink and dance the night away. They’re all sharing one blissful distraction from their reality, and if anybody notices the newlyweds slip into their house and lock the door, the guests only share a knowing smile and keep on dancing.


	4. Consolation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trouble in paradise.

Maccready’s been a farmer before-- way back when he and Lucy were just starting out and they shared a house with three other kids out of Little Lamplight. He’d been surprised to find that he’d liked it a little more than killing people for money, but he’d never thought that somehow those two professions would coincide. Except here he is, packing his bag to go help Garvey clear out a settlement being threatened by ferals-- a settlement that looks to his wife for guidance every goddamn time a twig breaks, just because they know she’ll help. It’s crazy to think that he’s kind of co-leader be extension, and that those settlers look to _him_ too. He’s actually almost a proper role model for his son now-- not that he can ever beat Nora.

She’s lounging on their bed, watching him pack for the little mission. “What?” he asks, because she’s staring and that still flusters him even though they got married two months ago.

“Nothing,” she grins, “I just like looking at my husband.”

He blushes and shoves a box of fusion cells into his pack a little too roughly, “There are better things to look at. Ever heard of a mirror?”

“I have,” she nods, “wouldn’t think so by my attempt at makeup, but…”

Maccready rolls his eyes and murmurs, “C’mere,” fastening his pack closed.

Nora crawls up the bed toward him, taking fistfuls of his shirt and pulling herself up with them. His hands come up to rest on her shoulders and he looks down at her appreciatively, their noses almost touching. “I’m surprised, y’know.”

“About?” he breathes back, afraid to break the calm peace that’s settled between them. It’s hard sometimes to gain this with Duncan around now, always full of energy and just around the corner. The little boy is currently helping Mama Murphy in the garden, gathering baskets of tatos.

“That you _volunteered_ to go help the Abernathys. Usually you need a little push,” she laughed softly, “...a little incentive.”

He pulls her closer, pressing their foreheads together, “Figured I should start pulling my weight around here-- especially since you started teaching.” Nora's knowledge of the world before the nuclear wasteland that exists now is rare and she spends two days a week speaking at the little schoolhouse that's been tossed together. There's only three kids, including Duncan, but they all love it.

Her face softens and she kisses him, pulling him in. Every time they kiss he feels a little bout of weightlessness. Her affection makes him forget about his concerns-- his crooked teeth, his thin, lean build, the little sounds that escape his mouth before he can stop them. She loves every part of him, and he will never cease to be grateful for it.

“I love you,” she murmurs against him, “but Garvey will have my head if I make you late.”

“I love you too,” he laughs, “and so does Garvey. His own head’s so far up your--”

“Hey!” she cuts him off, pulling back and hitting his arm.

“It’s true,” he insists, slinging his bag over his shoulder and his arm around her shoulders as they make their way downstairs. “He’s just too scared to hit on a married woman.”

“Daddy!” A little voice crashes into them before she can retort and he looks down at his son to see his hands stained red. “I’m done with the tatos!”

“What happened to your hands?” he asks, kneeling down and pulling them into his own.

“I...mighta squeezed a few accidentally…” Duncan admits, looking away from his father.

“Oh geez,” Nora laughs, “Come on, let’s go get washed up.”

“Daddy’s gotta go, okay, buddy? I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Maccready presses a kiss to his son’s forehead and then pulls him into a tight hug. As much as Nora loves him, he’s never felt more love from anybody than his son. When Lucy had given birth to Duncan, Maccready had been surprised to feel such an indisputable, unconditional love for him-- something he’d never felt before. Maccready’s been working with weapons since he was Duncan’s age, but he’s never seen or felt something as powerful as his little boy.

He rises from the hug to press a kiss to Nora’s lips and then he’s walking out the door, nodding at her call to stay safe. Garvey meets him by the bridge, holding the flamer he’d picked up when he’d traveled with Nora. “Ready to go?” the man asks when Maccready gets close.

“As I’ll ever be,” he’s hoping to get home before they wake up in the morning. Garvey starts to ramble about citizens and hope and blah, blah, blah. Maccready thinks about his family and if there’s any gifts he can be on the lookout for.

 

Nora and Duncan have developed a ritual. She’d been nervous that he’d be awkward and unhappy around her, but he _loves_ spending time with her. And she sincerely loves him too, loves his smattering of freckles and his creative way of looking at things. Every afternoon they both set aside time to continue an ongoing story they’ve been working on. So far they’re on Chapter 6, and she thinks he’ll want to continue, but he presents her with something new.

“I found this in the fields,” he says, holding up a little orange cartridge, “It’s a...a h-holotape, right?”

He struggles on the word, but she nods, “Yep. In my time people used to record things on these and then you give them like little presents. My...I had a few.” She buried the one that Nate had left her in his grave with him.

“Could...could we record one for Dad?” he asks tentatively, holding it delicately in his small fingers.

“We…” she’s struck by the love this kid has for his father, and it makes her pause for a moment, “...we can try.”

They load it into the tape player that Duncan had brought from DC. They usually use it for his lessons, but it’ll work fine for this. Nora holds it up to him, and he begins to speak nervously, “Hey, Daddy, Nora and I found this holotape and we wanted to leave you a message. I love you lots and lots and lots...you know how much!” the boy giggles, “I hope you like this! Here, it’s Nora’s turn.”

Duncan passes it to her, and she takes it a little shyly, a laugh in the back of her throat, “Uh...hey, Rob. I...just wanted to say that I love you and I’m so...so fortunate that we met. I don’t know where I’d be without you...I love you more than I can say, and I love Duncan too. Hey--” she’s about to suggest that they say goodbye together, but an explosion rocks the ground beneath their feet.

“Nora!” Duncan shouts just as she clicks the stop button, scrambling towards her. Her arms go around him automatically, and she keeps him close, scanning outside of his bedroom window. It looks like raiders-- a few veterans among the scavvers and the psychos.

“Stay here,” she presses him into the corner of his room, “Be quiet and don’t let anyone but me in, okay?”

“Okay,” he nods, clutching one of his teddy bears. Nora hits the eject button on the tape and tosses it onto his bed.

Looking back at him, in a rare bout of courage she says, “I love you, okay? Everything’s gonna be fine.”

Duncan smiles a little, the grip on the bear loosening ever so slightly, “I love you too Nora.”

She nods, swallowing the lump in her throat and closing the door. Outside is chaos, settlers screaming as they try to fight back the raiders. One of the other mothers, a woman named Sarah, is scurrying away with the two other children. Nora is grateful and sends a thumbs up to Sarah before she grabs her combat rifle and tries to set up her shots. The raiders are tossing grenades and she has to keep moving. She hears Jun shout, “No!” and looks just in time to see Marcy drop to the ground. Jun looks furious and he charges at the raiders with a machete she’d given him, stabbing one psycho and drooping over when another unloads into him. Nora feels sick and everything is happening too fast.

The call for her husband is on her lips before she realizes that they’re alone-- Preston and Mac won’t be back for another few hours at the very least, and settlers are dropping all around her, their defenses blown to pieces. She shares a meaningful look with Dogmeat before the dog turns away from the raiders and runs in the same direction Sarah had. Desperate, she tosses a few grenades, trying to keep the raiders back, but she freezes when she hears a small voice cry out, “Nora!”

“Duncan!” she screams, her gut dropping when she sees a raider pulling him roughly out of the house by his arm.

“Get that woman-- she’s the one we need!” The raider shouts, and Nora has to let herself be gripped and shoved in line with Duncan. “Wait! Get rid of the pipboy-- she can use it to communicate! There’s no sign of Garvey-- he’ll be back, leave the note.” They unhook the pipboy roughly and she has to bite her lip from the sting as the needle leaves her arm. The raiders toss the battered pipboy to the ground, letting it clatter against the street. Duncan is crying and she wants desperately to communicate that she will keep him safe. She’s outnumbered and outgunned now, but Maccready and Preston will return and there will be hell to pay. The dirty raiders lead them away from Sanctuary, billows of smoke wafting out of the settlement from the explosions.

 

The ghouls are easy to pick off, especially with Preston burning the bodies as they go. They’re done sooner than expected and Maccready thinks he might make it home before it gets too late. Garvey tries to get them to stay, but he insists that they need to get back. He feels accomplished and he wants to be with his family.

The two of them walk a little lazily, until they spot the smoke tendrils in the distance. “What…?”

“It’s Sanctuary!”

They go as fast as they can, but it’s not fast enough. Panic worms it’s way through him, coiling tightly in his stomach. If there was a fire-- if a rogue grenade went off-- _anything_ could have hurt Nora or Duncan. His throat tightens with each step closer to the settlement, panic and worry flaring up inside of him. _Please let them be okay, please, god, please._

“No!” erupts from Garvey when they see the first dead settler on the bridge. Maccready doesn’t have the energy to feel guilty about the relief that loosens his fingertips. They walk further quickly, Maccready’s heart pounding in his chest. _Please, please, please._

He swears that it stops when his eyes fall on the pipboy tossed on the ground-- _her_ pipboy. He begins to shout desperately, “Nora! Duncan!”. Garvey doesn’t follow when Maccready breaks into a sprint toward their house, instead leaning solemnly over the bodies of his friends. Silently, he thanks God that Sturges was spending a week at the castle.

The front door is open and it does nothing to stop the cold drips of fear running down his back. “Baby!” he shouts, frantically checking their living room and kitchen before thundering up the stairs. He beelines straight for Duncan’s room, and his heart drops when he finds it empty, the teddy bear that his son loves so much carelessly laying on the floor. He’s about to turn around when a flash of orange catches his eye, and he sees a holotape on Duncan’s bed. Curious, he snatches it and jogs to retrieve Nora’s pipboy. Garvey meets him at the bottom of the stairs, holding out a letter.

Maccready’s temperature drops when he realizes it’s a ransom-- crudely written and smudged with blood. “No...no…” he breathes, leaning back against a wall.

“We’re gonna get them back,” Garvey assures, his voice rough, “We’re gonna make those assholes pay for what they did. I found Sarah with Neil and Darla and Dogmeat hiding in the storage shed-- she said they looked like the ones we saw northeast-- the ones with yellow markings.”

Maccready swallows and nods, crumpling up the paper. _They have to be alive, they have to be._ Garvey leaves him to sweep the rest of the town and he drops to the floor, the weight of anxiety pulsing in his chest. He loves Duncan and Nora with everything he has-- every single thing he does is for them in some way. If he loses them, then he will have nothing.

Shaking his head, he remembers the holotape and rises on shaky legs to go retrieve Nora’s pipboy. _Snap out of it, they need you._

Even when he isn’t insanely worried, he’s clumsy with the pipboy. Now that his fingers are shaking from nagging thoughts, he’s even worse. After a few unsuccessful attempts, he’s finally able to load the holotape. Static crackles for a second before he hears his son, “Hey, Daddy, Nora and I found this holotape and we wanted to leave you a message. I love you lots and lots and lots...you know how much! I hope you like this! Here, it’s Nora’s turn,” there’s a shuffling sound and then Nora speaks to him,  “Uh...hey, Rob. I...just wanted to say that I love you and I’m so...so fortunate that we met. I don’t know where I’d be without you...I love you more than I can say, and I love Duncan too. Hey--” the distant sound of an explosion can be heard and it makes Maccready’s fists clench. The last thing on the tape is his son shouting fearfully, “Nora!”

When Preston returns, he doesn’t mention anything about the tears choking Maccready.

 

“If you touch him, I will _kill_ you,” she snarls when a raider tries to put them in separate cells. The raider-- referred to as Tommy-- shrugs and tosses them in one together.

Duncan is crying, and Nora pulls him into her arms. “I want Dad,” the boy moans, clutching her shirt.

 _Me too._ Her chest aches and she murmurs, “It’s okay, Dunc. He’ll be here soon, and I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”

The boy sniffles, unable to calm himself down. She strokes his hair until he falls asleep, exhausted from all the emotions he's raced through. She’s always enjoyed watching him sleep-- he looks so peaceful and it’s easy to think that they aren’t being held for ransom. Sighing, she tries to determine the best course of action. She has no weapons and if she tries to take out any raiders, there’s always the chance that Duncan will be hurt.

Nora despises having to wait around to be saved-- to have to wait for anything, but if that’s what will keep her step-son safe, then that’s what she’ll do. _Hurry up, Rob, before things get worse._

 

He tries his best to focus on the path in front of them, but his mind is going a million different places at once. The note that Garvey found is almost certainly from a group of raiders holed up in the Sat Station up north of Sanctuary, and they’re going to walk through the night to get there. All Maccready can think about is his family-- his wife and his son and it occurs to him that he hadn’t seen some of the others either. Perhaps the raiders had taken them too or they'd been out on patrols.

_I should have been there to protect them._

All he can think about is how small Duncan is, how soft Nora is and his gut twists at the thought of them being hurt. _The last thing I did was leave them, god, I can’t--_

He finds himself praying to Lucy, desperate, _Please keep them safe, let them be okay, I need them and I can’t lose them._

They reach the satellite at about two in the morning, and Maccready attempts to pull himself together, pretends that he’s not terrified of what’s waiting for them inside. “Looks like there’s a dozen of them,” Garvey whispers, “Most of them are probably sleeping, we should go in stealthy.”

Maccready nods, pulling out the combat knife coated in poison Nora had given him when they had first started traveling together. They sneak behind the only two guards outside and Maccready feels a rush of satisfaction when the knife sinks into the man’s throat. Garvey is right-- when they slip into the station people are strewn across mattresses every few rooms. They move quickly, silencing the raiders before they have a chance to speak. Occasionally there’s someone with the nigth shift wandering around, but Garvey and Maccready manage to take them out before they can alert anyone else. The further in they get, the slicker Mac’s hands become. _Please, please, please…_

“Boss, come on, they’re not going to try anything. Let’s get some shuteye before the sun comes up-- Hank and Rosie will sound any alarms before anything even gets near us.” Garvey and Maccready stop in their tracks, right outside one of the rooms closer to the center.

“I’ll rest when these two are off our hands,” the “boss” snaps back, and Maccready hears her armor clank as she shifts. He knows they’ve been lucky thus far-- sleeping vets are much, much more easier than awake and ready ones. Garvey looks at him and they share a silent conversation-- one, two, three--

Maccready slides into the room, finding the woman and firing off a shot before catching sight of Nora and Duncan in a cell to his left. It looks like Duncan had fallen asleep in her lap, and they both jerk up when he fires. A small surge of pride stabs his gut when he sees Nora’s fingers tighten around his son, pulling him closer, looking up wildly for the threat. When their eyes meet, he lets out a long breath of relief-- _they’re okay, they’re **alive.**_

The raiders quickly draw his attention back, the woman screaming wildly as she tries to aim her rifle. Garvey is using his automatic laser rifle to take out the man, so Maccready draws her attention away from everyone else and tries to shoot her hand with his revolver. The close quarters are cramping both of them, so he abandons the gun and pulls the knife back out. Maccready recklessly rushes her and jabs where he can, in between her armor, under the cage. The raider quickly catches on and grunts, kneeing him in the side. His breath leaves him in a gust, and he falls to his knees before he can get his bearings.

“Daddy!” Maccready jolts, his head whipping toward his son. Duncan is watching with wide, fearful eyes and Nora is trying to shield him. He looks back up when he hears Garvey cry out when the raider lands a jab right to his jaw. Maccready rises with new purpose, grabbing his pistol and lining up the shot while she’s distracted with Garvey. With a loud crack, the woman crumples with a groan, and Maccready is thankful that Nora managed to cover Duncan’s eyes.

He scrambles to the cell, catching the key when Garvey throws it to him and ripping the door open. His heart is pounding and all of the fear, all of the anxiety crashes over him with a bitter sort of relief because _god, they were so close to being gone forever and i’m never going to let go of them again._ Duncan crashes into Maccready’s arms and then he’s pulling Nora close too, sandwiching Duncan. He’s crying, but he doesn’t care. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have left, I should have been there,” he babbles, pressing kisses any part of them he can reach.

“You came,” Nora murmurs, “We’re okay.”

“I love you, Daddy,” Duncan sighs, curling up on his lap.

“I love you too, Dunc,” Maccready says fiercely, “and I’m never going to let anything hurt you.”

Nora pulls away, slipping her hand into his, watching the two of them, “Are you wearing my pipboy?”

“Oh,” he glances over Duncan’s head and says softly, “I found the holotape.”

“Oh,” she blushes a little and he offers her a watery smile.

“I...it’s perfect.”

“I know,” she murmurs, her eyes flicking down to Duncan, “Let’s go home.”

**Author's Note:**

> i may continue this?? with life with duncan?? who knows


End file.
